First Solstice
by The Flame and Hawk's Eye
Summary: As Roy prepares to spend his first Winter Solstice at the Hawkeye residence, he is soon shocked to discover that the family doesn't even acknowledge the holiday. And while Riza claims that it isn't a big deal, Roy knows that deep down it's something she yearns to celebrate. With that in mind, he decides that not celebrating it simply won't do...


**A/N:** _This was a Secret Santa gift for the wonderful mustangsgloves on Tumblr! I figured I'd publish it now because 1) Tis the season and 2) As a sort of announcement that I am feverishly writing and plan on finishing a few chapters for my stories soon. So hope you all enjoy! Happy Holidays!_

* * *

Riza Hawkeye always knew that her father's youngest and longest staying apprentice was peculiar. From the way he dressed to the way he spoke, and even to the holidays he claimed to celebrate; Roy Mustang was an odd one. She honestly shouldn't have thought much about his unusual behavior when the weather changed and the days began to grow shorter, but at the same time she couldn't help it.

So when she questioned him as he wrapped small boxes of trinkets to send home to his aunt and sisters, he nonchalantly replied that it was for the Winter's Solstice. She must have given him a funny look because his expression immediately changed.

After he picked his jaw up off of the floor, he asked, "You do celebrate it, don't you?"

"Celebrate," she asked as she wrinkled her nose. "What is there to celebrate? It's the shortest day of the year. The only thing worth celebrating is the fact that there will be more sunlight every day."

"You mean you don't put up a tree?"

She shook her head.

"Or get gifts for your father?"

Riza shrugged her shoulders. "It isn't something we've ever celebrated, to be honest. It's possible that my father and mother celebrated it when I was young, but I don't remember, nor have I ever ventured to ask him."

"And you don't celebrate at your school," Roy asked, still trying to wrap his mind around the concept of her not celebrating a silly holiday.

She shook her head. "A few of my classmates exchange gifts, but we otherwise only get a week off, which in my mind seems pointless."

"It isn't pointless at all," Roy replied. "It's to spend time with family and friends."

Tired of discussing the matter with him, seeing that he was not going to understand, she closed the book on her lap and got to her feet. "It's pointless when you really don't have much of a family or friends to celebrate it with." Without staying behind to see his expression, she hastily walked out of the living room and to her bedroom, where she wouldn't be bothered by the ideas about the Solstice again.

Unfortunately, however, the thoughts followed her there, manifesting themselves in the back of her mind as she eased herself onto her bed and opened the book. It wasn't long before she began to think about the cheap ornaments and decorations that adorned the shop fronts and trees of her hometown, or the cheery demeanors of the townspeople whenever she entered one of the shops. She would admit that it had always been a pleasant time of year for her. Whether it was because of the colors and decorations or the changed dispositions of the people in town, she would never know. All she knew was that she preferred to go to town to run errands and spend time around the exuberance there than the melancholy drab that was her home.

But with Roy living there now, maybe she would see some of that cheer at home. With a sigh she rested the book on her stomach and stared up at the ceiling. She shouldn't get her hopes up. Now that he knew it was a holiday they didn't celebrate, she doubted he would do anything to change that, especially if her father had any say in it. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to drift to sleep as images of shiny round ornaments and bright, colored lights danced in front of her eyes.

* * *

Just as she had thought, nothing in her home changed in the week since she told Roy that she and her father did not celebrate the Solstice. She knew that she shouldn't have gotten her hopes up. After all, who would want to argue with her father about the holiday anyways?

Shrugging her shoulders, she turned the corner and trudged through the freshly fallen powder that had fallen the night before, heading up the path to her house. When she opened the front door, she closed it behind her and stomped her boots on the rug, looking around to see if there were any signs of her father or Roy. While she had expected her father to not be there to greet her, she was surprised to not see Roy in the armchair he normally positioned himself in.

Pushing her surprise away, she told herself that he was probably running some sort of errand for her father, or had holed himself up in his room to study for his next alchemy lesson. Just as she began to slip her boots off, she heard the back door that led from the kitchen to the backyard slam shut. "Hello," she called as she kicked her other boot off.

"Hey," Roy called as he jogged around the corner, his cheeks and nose bright red from being out in the cold. "I didn't know you'd be home so quickly," he panted.

Riza quirked a brow. "What were you doing? Running a marathon in the snow?"

He chuckled and shook his head. "Nah, I was chopping firewood. We were running low so I figured I'd cut some more before it began to snow again."

"I see," she replied as her eyes wandered over to the untouched dry woodpile that was stocked to the brim in the corner nearest the fireplace. "I guess if you though we were running low…"

"Yeah," he agreed hastily as he shrugged his damp jacket off of his shoulders. "Now there's enough to last us through the week."

Before she could say anything else, he threw his jacket over his shoulder and made his way over to the staircase. Casting her once last glance over his shoulder, he smiled apologetically and said, "Sorry, I won't be able to stick around for homework tonight. I have to work on an assignment Master Hawkeye gave me this morning. It's looking like it'll take the rest of the evening."

"Okay," she replied, though she doubted he heard her. By the time she finished uttering that single word he was already at the top of the steps and halfway to his room. When she heard him slam his door closed, she huffed. Something was definitely up…

* * *

"Hey, Riza?"

"Yeah," she asked without looking up from her book.

"Could you help me outside for a few minutes?"

Turning her gaze toward him, she saw that his snow pants and jacket were already on, still damp from his romp in the snow the day before. She quirked a brow. "What do you need to do outside that we haven't already done this week?"

Roy shrugged his shoulders, seemingly embarrassed. "Well," he began, "I wanted to check out a few of the traps we set a few days ago. With the weather the way its been, I'm worried that whatever we could have caught might be too frozen at this point. I figured since you've trapped in the winter before, that you'd be better at determining what we keep and what we don't."

With a sigh, she rested her book pages down on the sofa and got to her feet. "Alright, just let me get my snow gear on. I should be back down in about five minutes or so."

"Okay," he replied a little too eagerly. When she shot him a quizzical look, he smiled and said, "I'll meet you outside in a few," as he turned on his heels and headed toward the back door.

Shaking her head, she decided that, one way or another, she would finally discover what had been going on in his mind for the past week.

* * *

Tossing the spoiled meat from the last trap they checked to the side, Riza sighed. "It must have gotten too cold last night. None of them were thawed enough to even make stew with." Looking back at Roy, she saw a look of disappointment cross his face. Rising to her feet and taking a few steps toward the home, Riza shrugged her shoulders. "It happens sometimes. We just have to be more diligent with checking the traps."

"Yeah," he agreed without making a move to follow her. Apparently seeing her confusion, he looked away from her and pointed in the opposite direction of where she was headed. "I think there's one more out there."

Tracking his finger with her eyes, she furrowed her brows. "I don't remember setting one out there."

Roy shrugged. "Remember when you taught me how to build the traps before?" When she nodded, he explained, "Well, I decided to try and set one up myself, so I'd like to go and check on it to see.

"Who knows. Maybe whatever's inside will still be warm enough for its meat." When Riza nodded in agreement, he beamed and motioned for her to follow. "It isn't too far from here. About a few minutes walk."

As he began to make his way in the opposite direction, Riza fell into step a few paces behind him, letting him lead the way. Before long, however, those 'few minutes' seemed to become more numerous. Roy didn't seem to care, nor did he acknowledge it, instead weaving through the forest and followed a pair of boot tracks that were embedded into the night's freshly fallen snow.

When a few more minutes passed and each step took them further and further from her normal hunting ground. "Where are we going," she demanded as he leapt over a fallen tree, prompting her to follow suit. "The trap shouldn't be this far out."

"You'll see," he called over his shoulder.

Riza huffed with annoyance. "It's going to be getting dark soon," she pointed out.

"Almost there," he promised as he wove between a set of trees.

Picking up her pace, she skirted the trees and turned to follow him when she ran into his back. Stumbling backwards, she muttered, "Why did you—"

"We're here," he said as he stepped out of the way and turned toward her, gesturing to the clearing he stopped short of.

When her eyes wandered to the scene he motioned toward, her heart skipped a beat. Standing in the middle of the small clearing was a small pine tree adorned with a variety of colorful ornaments and wrapped in shimmery lengths of tinsel. Mesmerized by the myriad of colors, she took a few steps forward and brushed her fingers over the pine needles, breathing in their scent. Then, turning her attention toward the ornament nearest her, she tapped it with her index finger, watching as it swayed back and forth on the branch.

The edges of the ornament were rough and it wasn't perfectly rounded. Gliding her fingers over one of the seams, she realized that she recognized the way it was held together: alchemy. Her eyes wandered to the other ornaments, taking note that they were all a little rough around the edges… every single one of them constructed by alchemy.

"Do you like it?"

When she whirled around, Roy was standing just short of her, his outstretched hand holding a small wrapped package.

"It's… beautiful," she murmured as she looked back at the tree.

Roy chuckled. "I'm glad you like it. It took a couple of trips and a few days to get everything out here, but it ended up coming together quite nicely."

Looking back at him, she said, "All of this… All of this is for me?"

"Of course," he replied with a sheepish grin. "I just thought that you should experience a proper Winter Solstice at least once." Raising his hand up higher, he added, "Gifts and all."

She glanced down at the package in his hand and curled her arms into her chest. "I didn't get you anything, though," she protested.

"I know," he answered as he reached out and grasped one of her hands, pulling it down and opening it. Placing the box into her palm, he smiled warmly and said, "I got this knowing I wouldn't get anything in return." When she began to protest again, he shook his head, "You might as well open it, Riza. I threw away the receipt and it isn't something myself or your father would use. It's specifically for you."

"I… I don't know what to say," she said as she looked down at his hand, still on top of the box.

"You don't have to say anything," he replied as he withdrew his hand. "Just open it and enjoy."

Reaching up with her other hand, she grasped the edge of one of the ribbons that made up the bow. It was beautifully wrapped, not a single tear or crease where it shouldn't have been. Destroying such a pristine-looking object seemed wasteful. When she looked back up at him, he nodded toward it, his eyes shining eagerly.

Turning her attention back down to the gift, she exhaled quietly and convinced herself to pull the ribbon apart. When it came undone and fluttered to the ground, she slid her fingers beneath the wrapping paper and carefully picked it apart, trying her hardest to preserve it. After working at it for a few moments, the paper spread apart and presented to her the small black box it contained.

Reaching up, she pulled the top of the box off with her free hand, her breath catching in her throat when she saw what was inside.

"I know you don't have your ears pierced… But I thought that if you ever got it done these would look good on you."

Riza looked up at Roy to see that his cheeks had turned a ruddy hue. Rubbing the back of his neck, he added, "I'm sorry they're so plain looking, but silver was the only thing I could really afford."

"No," she said quickly, "Don't be sorry." Reaching down into the box, she pulled the cardboard stand they were displayed on. Holding them up so that the sun caught them and reflected its light, she murmured, "I love them."

"I'm glad," he replied as the blush on his cheeks deepened.

Placing them back inside of the box, she felt her own cheeks grow warm. He had done all of this… for her. The ornaments, the tree, the planning, the gift… All so that she could experience her first Winter's Solstice.

Suddenly feeling at a loss for words, she replaced the top of the small box and placed it into the pocket of her jacket. Then, surprising even herself, she reached out and wrapped her arms around her father's apprentice, the boy she rarely allowed herself to get too close to, and drew him into a hug.

"Thank you, for everything," she whispered as he wrapped his arms around her as well.

She felt Roy smile against her ear. "Happy Winter's Solstice, Riza."


End file.
